Trente Bises
by FilledeMarius
Summary: Thirty moments in the lives of Pip Bernadette and Seras Victoria. From the 30kisses challenge on LJ.
1. Epidemic

Epidemic

'I don't know how to put this, so I'll give it to you straight. Our job's monster hunting."

It was an unusual job, but they were in an unusual situation. They had lost quite a few of their numbers, including their vice captain, in the slums of Uganda. The morale among his men low, Captain Pip Bernadette had decided to get them back to Europe, where most of them were from. Hell, maybe he could even go back to France and visit the cemetery where most of his family was buried. They had been in South America so long that they had nearly forgotten how to speak English, much less French.

Needless to say, his men did not believe what he told them and laughed. "Quit shitting us!"

"It's true." Though the voice of the woman whom the butler had said was his boss spoke in a normal tone of voice, it carried well and the men turned to listen. "Your enemy is a vampire who gains immortality by drinking blood. Our job is to carry around garlic and holy water, put a wooden stake in its heart, chop off its head, burn its corpse, and sprinkle its ashes at the crossroads. For more information, consult Bram Stoker."

The Geese were even more incredulous than before as she informed them precisely why they did not know and of the origins of her organization. "If you still don't get it, then take a good look for yourselves! That is your enemy, a vampire." She gestured toward the room's right wall.

"What?" Pip blinked a few times before he could believe what he was seeing. A girl no more than nineteen years old was leaning against the wall with an awkward smile on her face. Her spiky blonde pigtails and bangs framed her wide blue eyes. The skin-tight yellow uniform hugged her body, as did the white, thigh high stockings that disappeared into black ankle boots. She shifted awkwardly from one foot to the other.

He got up from the chair and walked over to her. "Hold on a sec. You're a vampire?"

"Yes, well… I guess I am."

For the second time that day, the men burst into laughter. The apparently mortified vampire pointed a shaking finger, muttering "I…I knew they were going to laugh. Like I said before."

"Then give them a demonstration, police girl," the other woman said.

"R-Roger!" She snapped to attention and saluted. "Go ahead, sir!"

Pip now joined his men in their mirth. "If this little _mignonette _is a vampire, than I'm Frankenstein's monster!" As he went to grab her, he did not see her eyes narrow or the finger that seemed to come out of nowhere and send him flying.

Blood ran out of his nose as she continued to flick him backwards harder and harder until he hit the ground. The vice captain pushed his way through the crowd. "C-C-Captain!"

"She's a monster! I didn't see it coming, not even a sign! She just poked me in the forehead and my whole head's swimming! "He reached up reflexively to adjust his bush hat. "Is she really a vampire?"

"She really is," rumbled a deep baritone from behind the soldiers. Much to their horror, various body parts of a man in a large red fedora, gold sunglasses, and Victorian dress were coming through the room's left wall. "Though she may be the lowest of the low, she's still a card carrying vampire." The Wild Geese shrank back and uttered cries of alarm as one.

"Cowardly bunch." He finished materializing and stood at his full height. "You think we can use these people?"

Just then, the butler that had shown them in earlier appeared at the doorway and addressed their boss. "My apologies, Miss. I tried to stop him but—"

The former cut him off. "These men will be guarding my master. I wanted to see who they were."

When the retainer gave the lady knight a letter and the focus was taken off of them, Pip pondered their state of affairs and decided that it had gone from unusual to just plain bizarre. Whether this organization was as heroic as it claimed to be remained to be seen.

_Ce n'est pas notre travail habituel, _he mused to himself._ Mais , c'est le seul travail que nous avons._*

*It's not our usual job, but it's the only one we've got.


	2. Fall From Grace

Fall from Grace

Seras Victoria sighed, staring morosely up at the stars. Her master enjoyed nights like this, which was why he was currently out on a mission and she was left to contemplate her current affairs on the back steps of the mansion.

"You need some time to think, police girl," Integra had told her not unkindly after giving her a cursory once-over when they were called into her office to be briefed. Though she gave no reason why, Seras's bloodlust was ever the elephant in the room. It shamed her, knowing that the lady knight would never look at her the same way again. She wondered if that was why her limbs felt so heavy.

It had taken less than two weeks for Seras Victoria to go from a bright young woman with a promising career to a blood-sucking nosferatu who was expected to kill and did so on a nightly basis. She was no ordinary police officer, as Walter had pointed out to her the other day; D-11 was one of the only units in the United Kingdom that was allowed to handle firearms. However, she had been on her mandatory two year period of probation given to all the recruits, as well as her colleagues Eddie Robinson and Simon Morris. Walter, with Sir Integra's blessing, had felt that it was his duty to inform her of the actual details of the situation that had lead to her death.

"You should not have been sent in there, Miss Victoria, nor your coworkers. It was an accident. Considering your father's prowess in the force, I would have expected them to look after you better."

The police force was currently under investigation for charges of corruption, bribery, and reckless endangerment. He had assured her that if there was a settlement paid to the families of the dead, he would see to it that the money became hers.

She felt that her master Alucard understood the situation more than he let on, seeing as that he had offered his blood and freedom to her that night in Badrick, but he appeared to be much less sympathetic than the butler and her boss. "You chose the night; there's no turning back in the light of day." In truth, she herself was not sure why she could not bring herself to drink blood; she knew that it was unhealthy to continue on like this, but straddling the line between human and monster was a slippery slope and she had little to no faith in her ability to keep herself from falling into the abyss.

_Kohlberg would have a field day with this_, she thought deprecatingly as she stood, feeling her master's presence on the border of the manor and deciding to talk with him about her dilemma in earnest. At least, she tried to.

Pip Bernadotte, a few feet away, had been watching the draculina out of the corner of his eye as he chatted with the men. He felt a bit bad for her; they had not exactly acted like heroes or gentlemen yesterday and though the Wild Geese were rough around the edges, they prided themselves on being somewhat chivalrous, seeing as about half of them were French or from a French-speaking country. Adjusting his hat surreptitiously, he began to walk over to her as she stood up and broke into a run when she stumbled and fell.

Seras was vaguely aware of a descending sensation when strong arms caught her around the waist and her head was caught gently against something hard but warm. She blinked slowly, getting her bearings.

"You all right, girlie?" Something soft brushed the side of her face. She opened her eyes to see the concerned mercenary captain holding her, his brunette braid against her cheek. The blush spread quickly when she realized the position they were in, her head pillowed against his shoulder. "Captain…"

"You don't have to talk if you can't." He experimentally shifted her position on him and tightened his grip on her when she staggered again, never taking his green eye off of her. "Can you focus for me?"

She nodded gingerly and fixed her eyes on his light orange scarf. "_Bien_." His breath smelled of cigarettes and beer. "I'm not sure what's wrong with you, _mignonette_; you haven't moved since midnight." Nervously, he glanced over at his men who were watching and ordered, "Someone go get her master."

"No need." How a six foot man in red had managed to blend into the darkness Pip would never know, but he stepped out of the background and went to them quickly. "Turn her towards me, Captain."

Carefully propping her up as he moved, the mercenary managed to get the fledgling to a somewhat standing pose. "Look at me, draculina." Seras obeyed the best that she could and he carefully cupped her chin with one hand as he examined her eyes. "Hmmm. As I thought. Dawn comes in two hours."

"What does that mean?" She asked, trying to stand and failing for a third time. Before she could go far, Alucard caught her under the arms and Pip grabbed her waist, both men hauling her upright promptly.

"Don't move again, lest you fall a fourth time. Your body can sense that the sun is coming and wants to sleep. Because you refuse to take blood, it is tricked into feeling it earlier than it should and renders you barely mobile. Also, you have never been out this late; we've made sure to get you inside at least two hours before the sun rises."

"So, how can she get better?"

"Sleep." He bent forward slightly. "Put your arms around my neck, police girl. You, support her."

Seras, though shaking, managed to wrap her limbs around him as his arm went around her back; the captain held her hips as the elder vampire hooked the other under the fledgling's knees and swept her up, carefully adjusting her so that her head would not loll. "Thank you, Captain. I'll take it from here."

"Will she be all right?"

"By tomorrow, yes," he said over his shoulder as he began to ascend the steps, leaving the Frenchman alone with his thoughts.

After blinking blearily a few times, the girl was out like a light. When they reached her room, Alucard concentrated on the coffin and his shadows sprung out from under his boots and opened the lid. He carefully laid her sleeping form down upon the lining and sighed heavily as he regarded the former.

"What am I to do with you, Seras Victoria?"


	3. Unexpected

Unexpected

Captain Pip Bernadotte had been separated from his men in battles before, usually with a partner, and gotten back fine. However, he had never been stuck in battle with a woman before, much less a pretty blonde vampire. They were currently holed up behind a thicket of trees, shooting at the ghouls that came too close for comfort.

"Captain, are you all right?" The worried voice of the vice captain crackled through Pip's earpiece.

"Yeah, we're good for now." He watched Seras fire at an approaching one four yards away and carnage fly everywhere. "How's your position? Any casualties yet? I'm not sure whether the boss could take the toxins out of you."

"Fine. Something's up with these things, though."

"Yeah?" He fired his last bullet at a ghoul and reloaded. "Where did you hear that?"

"Well, you know the butler?"

"_Ouais_, Walter."

"I heard him and the boss talking and she said that usually the ghouls would be gone after the head vampire got offed, but that it wasn't happening with the latest cases."

"Maybe this one's not dead yet; we've seen in the past week that _Monsieur _Alucard likes to play with his food." He noticed a change in the frequency of shots that his partner was firing and stopped. "Hang on; I've got to take this. I'll check back with you in a minute or two. Hang tight, vice captain. Over. "

"Roger that, Captain. Over." The earpiece crackled once more and went silent.

"What's up with you, girlie? You look upset." He shot five ghouls in the head in quick succession.

"Captain, have you not noticed the increasing number of reanimated corpses? I need to concentrate, not talk," she grimaced, killing three more and then stopping to glare at him.

He caught one that came too close. "First things first, you can't even think of calling yourself a soldier if you don't learn to shoot and talk at the same time. Second, never take your eyes off the enemy."

"I'm looking at him right now," she grumbled halfheartedly under her breath as both of them reloaded.

After they finished off the particularly thick wave of ghouls, the comment struck her as rather ungrateful. Though her memories of last night were foggy, she remembered the captain catching her and ensuring that her master was found before things took a turn for the worse. Her expression turned instantly morose. "Captain?"

"Yeah?" He noticed her face and grinned. "_Bon Dieu_, who died?"

It was a terrible joke, but they laughed hard in spite of it. Panting slightly from the laughter and feeling better than she had in a long time, Seras couldn't help but return the smile. "Captain, you're awful."

"It's one of my many talents." Pip glanced back out at the empty field. "Looks like your master got to the head." A final, ear-piercing scream shrilled from a distance and he winced. "I didn't know that banshees existed."

"Baobhan siths, actually, though they are similar," Seras replied, her eyes closed. "Particularly hungry ones; that's why there were so many ghouls. They don't usually come out of the mountains unless they're desperate." She blushed when he looked at her in amazement. "Master just told me."

"In your mind?"

"Er, yes. Just now. He'll be here in five minutes to take me back." She exhaled. "We don't want last night to happen again. Thank you for helping me last night, Captain. I'm sorry that I didn't tell you until now."

Pip's expression grew serious. "It was nothing, and if it helps," he rubbed the back of his head and sighed, "I'm sorry about the range yesterday. I'd like to be your friend, girlie. It seems to me that you could use one."

"Really?" Her eyes brightened and then dulled. "Wait. If you think that you're going to—"

"I don't." His eye met hers . "I can't promise that I'll be an angel, but I won't try to get under your skirt. _Je te jure __ç__a_."

The draculina's posture straightened and she smiled for the first time that evening. "Thank you, Captain. I'll see you tomorrow!" Shouldering the immense gun as if it weighed nothing, she ran toward her waiting master with a spring in her step. The latter raised an eyebrow at the mercenary, but let the matter lie as he began to walk into the distance, his elated fledgling following close behind.


	4. Underground

Underground

"You have to be careful in our line of work," Michael Victoria had told his nine-year old daughter two days before his death, brushing the blond fringe out of her baby blue eyes and kissing her forehead. They never wanted her to be a police officer, but he did not discourage her. Every day, he would tell his family what he could about his day on the force and Seras would eagerly tell her father about the heroic adventures that they would have when they were working together to hunt down criminals. He never had the heart to tell her that he would be retired by the time she became a policewoman, or so he thought.

"Police girl."

Snapped out of her reminiscing, the surprised draculina looked up at Alucard, shrinking slightly as he loomed over her. "I need to speak with you a moment. Would you be so kind as to come with me?"

She swallowed and nodded, wondering whether this was about the other night. She was almost sure that he had noticed her change in temper towards the captain and had a feeling that her master wouldn't be one to smile on relations between predator and prey. They did drink human blood, after all.

She blinked as white gloved fingers snapped in front of her face. "You're off tonight; you've been standing there for the past five minutes. Is your hunger impeding your ability to walk, fledgling?"

"I…I don't think so." Much to her relief, she found that statement to be true. "See, Master?"

"Then if you would." He began to walk towards the basement, Seras not far behind. It did not take them long to reach it and Alucard's shadows opened the door for them. "Would you prefer that I get you a chair?"

"No, I don't mind sitting on the floor." She seated herself on the right side of the throne and hugged her knees to her. Noticing the childish pose and noting mentally to look into her files later, the vampire sat, looking down at her as he spoke.

"To be frank with you, police girl, your case is without precedent. Any of the vampires that I have encountered over the five and a half centuries that I've been this way would be dead by now. The fact that you have managed to survive and function this well without blood for this long period of time is nothing short of remarkable. I didn't have nearly as much self control when I was newly turned. Whether it's because you are my fledgling or strong willed is unknown, but this is nothing short of remarkable." He shook his head when she perked up. "This isn't something for you to be proud of. Denying what you are will and refusing to drink blood will only hurt you and others in the long run."

"Others?"

Alucard laughed. "Do you think me blind? Even a fool could see that the mercenary captain and you have realized that the other is a member of the opposite gender who is not an adversary."

Her face flushed a dark red and she turned her head away. "Do you disapprove, Master?"

He reached down and caught her chin, forcing it upward. "Look at me when I'm talking to you," he chided gently. "No, it serves to drive my point home. If you refuse to drink, the risk of your attacking another person out of hunger increases. It would be best for everyone if you gave in to your instincts."

"But I've done well so far!"

"Yes, but that doesn't necessarily mean that it will continue. The odds are against you, police girl."

"Then I'll continue to defy them. The odds were against me in Cheddar, but I was the last one standing."

Alucard sighed. "Only my fledgling would be so stubborn as to completely disregard her master."

"I learned from the best." Seras regretted it as soon as it came out, covering her mouth with both hands in horror. Much to her surprise, her master chuckled instead of rebuking her. "So you do have a spine, Seras Victoria. It would be nice to see it more often. You'll think on what I've said, though, and eventually come around, but that's enough for tonight. It's almost five; time for you to be abed."

He stood and helped her up, walking her to the door. "Oh, one last thing."

"What?"

"Should you decide to enter into a romantic relationship with the mercenary captain, I would suggest that it be kept private." His expression was almost a smile. "You have to be careful in our line of work."


	5. Library Archives

Library Archives

He could not get over how much it bothered him. Though Pip Bernadotte had worked for a fair amount of out of the ordinary bosses, ranging from a deranged Somalian warlord to a reserved, polished oil tycoon in Honduras, he had never had a woman quite like this for a boss. If he said that he wasn't intimidated at all by Sir Integral Fairbrook Wingates Hellsing, he would be lying through his teeth.

It was difficult to put a finger on it because so much potential existed. Perhaps it was that she never had a hair out of place or that the No-Life King bowed to her, both of these despite her age. The fact that at the age of twenty-three, her stare could floor the most hardened hero baffled him; that glare should have been forged in the fires of war and oceans of blood, not a prim British manor in the countryside.

"Something on your mind, Captain?" She brushed a strand of long, nearly white hair over her shoulder with a gloved hand as she took a drag off of the cigar clenched between her teeth and exhaled smoke.

"Kind of, Sir. I haven't been in a library since my men had to hunker down in one when we were attacked by revolutionaries in Belize." He shrugged. "I didn't expect to be helping out with paperwork."

"The Round Table is very strict in what goes in and out, which leads to most of what you see here in the basement archives." She gestured at the room full of filing cabinets and special equipment for handling vintage books. "Some of these documents are very old, so one must be careful when handling them. We have alchemical texts dating back from the fifteenth century under lock and key here. I will admit, however, that having you down here to sort and go over your men's' files as we did earlier was not my only purpose." She cleared her throat. "What are your intentions concerning Seras Victoria, Captain?"

"Eh? We're just friends, Sir."

"For now?"

"Yes, Sir." He glanced from side to side clandestinely and lowered his voice. "To tell you the truth, I'm hoping for something more later on, but for now, we are what we are."

"Romantic relations or merely someone to bed?" She crossed her arms and shifted to one foot.

"_Bien sur que non_!" Pip shook his head heatedly, somewhat offended. "She's a good girl, not a whore; I'm not that heartless." He paused and then added apologetically, "Sir. My grandparents raised me to treat women well; I wouldn't have been able to sit down for a week if I so much as said boo to a girl. "

"I'm glad to hear that; it gives me one less thing to worry about, though Alucard may need more convincing if you choose to reassure him and I would prefer not to hear that language again in my presence. He's already spoken with his fledgling about it and other matters. Naturally, having a history of manipulating younger women with low self-esteem gives insight as to how and when others may do it and leaves a distinct paranoia of karma if a young ward with that trait comes under the former's wing. "

Pip stifled a snicker, and then grew serious. "Sorry, Sir. I can see where that would be a problem. If I may ask, though, why were you concerned about my relationship with the _mignonette_ in the first place?"

It took a moment for her to answer. "She is a member of Hellsing and under my protection, Captain; I would do the same for any employee." However, not unlike her hired gun, Integral Fairbrook Wingates Hellsing was also capable of lying through her teeth.

The night of Cheddar, her cigar had snapped in two when Walter informed her of what had transpired. After she ordered him to make arrangements for the girl's living quarters and have Alucard report to her when he returned, Integra had paced for ten minutes in front of the window, unable to believe his nerve. Who was he to do this, bring this girl into their lives without her permission or an explanation? She had never explicitly ordered him not to perform such an endeavor, but had not seen it coming at all.

If anything, she had felt an unexpected jealously. Alucard had been irrevocably and undeniably hers since that fatal day ten years ago in the basement. Without him and Walter, she had nothing. Was she not good enough for him anymore? What did he see in this girl that she didn't have? Her hands clenched into fists, she glared at the moon, cursing whoever in the heavens or the nether abyss had seen to this.

She sensed his presence before he entered the room, shadows gathering on the wall as he materialized. Closing her eyes, the knight voiced a question that sounded much more anguished than she intended it to.

"Why?"

"Master…" Her vampire's tone was a mix of surprise and concern as he moved towards her.

The slap rang out as her hand snaked up to meet his face, and its force shocked them both. Turning her head to the side so he wouldn't see her wince, Integra cradled her aching right hand and sucked in air. She had meant to hit him and for it to hurt, but not so hard that her fingers and palm went numb.

"I deserved that," Alucard said quietly, reaching up to touch the red mark with a gloved hand and wincing slightly. "Master, you must believe that I did not turn her for reasons of malicious intent."

"Then for what reason?"

"She asked me to; it was her choice and I saw fit to grant her that request because she resisted the vampiric priest."

"Did she know what she was asking?"

He shook his head. "Most likely not."

"Then what possessed you to do it?"

There was a long pause before an answer. "I don't know," he confessed wearily as his eyes met hers, distant and unfocused. Surprised at the pain in his that matched her own, she held his gaze and they stood there in a somnolent silence until he broke it. Her pain was replaced by apprehension when he gripped the backs of her biceps gently and bent, his lips almost brushing her left ear. "She's not you."

"Boss?"

Back in the present, Integra Hellsing blinked at her mercenary's concern. "Forgive me, Captain."

"What wonders are these? Is our lady Integral reminiscing?" Alucard loomed by one of the filing cabinets in a vaguely threatening way. After living with him for so long, she could tell what constituted as merely being intimidating and genuine menace. This was more a display of territory than anything else; no matter who the man was, Alucard trusted her with no one excepting Walter and even then, he was usually nearby.

She tsked and shook her head. "You're incorrigible."

"But you wouldn't have me any other way."

Integra ignored his response. "Did you get what I asked for?"

"They're on your desk as we speak. Shall we?"

"Indeed." She turned to Pip, who had either a remarkable talent for hiding discomfort or had become accustomed to the ways of Alucard very, very quickly. "Thank you for your help, Captain. Dismissed." The two exited the room, the vampire pausing to hold the door for his master. Pip sighed and decided to go get a beer and quietly ponder the reason for the perpetually smoldering tension between the pair.


	6. Magnifying Glass

Magnifying Glass

_From Case File #1187236, Ipswich Home for Children, 223 South James Blvd—_

"Seras Victoria is a bright and cheerful child. However, she has a strong sense of justice and has dealt it out rather violently in the past. When a boy stole a toy that she was playing with, she beat him over the head with a rock severely and refused to apologize when taken before the headmaster. Her father, Michael, was the police chief of the town in which they lived; this may be the root cause of that behavior. Victoria also easily forms an attachment to strong, maternal female figures, such as the current nurse, who has patched her up time and again. However, she refuses to let them leave her, especially if they are in the company of men. She will resort to physical violence in order to do so. The probable cause of this was her mother's murder and violation of the corpse. Victoria suffers from claustrophobia because her mother hid her in the closet before the incident and may have undergone additional trauma from the injuries sustained when she stabbed her mother's rapist in the eye with a fork."

_From Case File #1273122, L'__É__cole du Saint-Mathi__e__u, 203 la Rue Chevalier—_

"Philippe Bernadotte, or Pip, as he is called, is nothing but trouble. He acts out in class frequently, much to the delight of his classmates. Though his grandmother is a devout Catholic, his grandfather has no guilt for his sins and blasphemes freely. This appears to be where his grandson developed the habit, along with smoking. Sister Marie-Thérèse has caught him numerous times outside and in the men's toilets. Oddly enough, despite his abominable behavior toward the sisters, he is a favorite among the children. Bernadotte rarely has an unkind word to say to any, except when defending others. His intelligence is slightly above average and _Monsieur _Lebinet tells us that his metalworking skills are nothing short of excellent. However, he never applies himself except in that class. He also exhibits questionable values, telling _P__è__re _Lachaîne that a bit of money was all that a man's life was worth in confession."

"Well, this is most enlightening." Integra Hellsing leaned back in her chair, turning her head to the left to regard her servant. "The observations on Seras Victoria's part were of particular interest. Was she ever diagnosed?"

"Yes, but I felt that it should be disregarded. Not long after that report was filed, the psychiatrist was accused of unethical treatment towards his patients. The accusation went to trial and after conviction, he was imprisoned. What you read was the thoughts of another psychiatrist who examined her shortly after the first was found guilty. They concurred on their observations, but not the diagnosis.Other than these observations, Seras Victoria's psychological profile at the time of her death was normal."

"Indeed." She raised an eyebrow. "I was a little surprised at the smoking, though."

"These were taken at two different times. The captain's was at age thirteen and the police girl's was when she was nine years old."

"They've become uncommonly close over the past week; something is at work here."

"I was hoping you wouldn't say Freud."

"No, not after you and Walter spent the entire Christmas break after my first term at Oxford arguing me out of it."

"We were talking to your coursework the entire time, not you. What a strange lot professors are, filling your head with that frigid Victorian nonsense!"Alucard shook his head. "Even the worst fool in my time knew that women were not made of stone; we thought that they had to orgasm during sex to conceive."

"Rather primitive notion on your part."

"Ah, but it wasn't. There was a study." At this point, Alucard's expression had gone from incredulous amusement to that of which caused the fall of most female saints and several of the males. "It found that primitive notion, as you call it, correct, not to mention mutually beneficial."

"Kindly keep the benefits to yourself. We're getting off topic about the subject here." Integra sighed and examined the papers again. "It was corruption in the police force that caused the deaths of her parents and corruption that caused hers ten years later. The evidence would seem to suggest a correlation. How long has the current commissioner been in charge?"

"Twenty years, but we shouldn't jump to conclusions. Their behavior concerning the incidents wasn't exactly heroic, but it could have been merely incompetence on their part. Nonetheless, Walter and I will look into it farther if you wish."

"If you would, I'd appreciate it very much. Also, a cigar, please, if you don't mind."

"Certainly, Master. Now, would this be just a cigar or a phallic symbol?" Alucard dodged the pen thrown at him. "All right, I can take a hint."


	7. Recruitment

Recruitment

Contrary to the expectations of many, the Hellsing Organization worked like a small town in the fact that everyone knew everything about everyone else except in the case of Alucard, not counting the few that were brave enough to ask and those stupid enough to do it in such a way that they left the next day and were never heard from again. This was fairly advantageous because it ensured that the soldiers kept out of trouble, the safety of the staff, and that nothing happened without Sir Hellsing's permission, but rumor flew at the speed of a bush fire doused with heavy doses of hydrogen sulfide and pure oxygen.

Surprisingly, one of the few to whom the gossip was horse elbows was Pip Bernadotte. As a rule, he spent more time on reviewing previous forays and preparing the best way to train for the next. This was currently requiring a broadening of his horizons and he spent most of his waking hours in the library, poring over vampire lore and mythology and sketching out their methods of hunting and plans to counter them in a notebook that he kept with him. Since the beginning of the month, attacks had increased dramatically, leaving the Wild Geese and both vampires to handle several infestations a week.

However, a successful captain knew what was going on around the barracks and surprisingly, he had found a source of information in Seras Victoria. Her timid and polite attitude had caused the staff and soldiers to deem her as safe, but out of deference to her master, they let her be. It was not often that Alucard involved himself with household affairs, but when he did, he interfered with a heavy hand so that he had no cause to repeat it and it was often remembered well and talked about for weeks until Walter put a stop to the horrified chatter. Currently, she was informing him why one of his men, Private Benjamin Wilkins, a doe-eyed virgin and the frequent butt of company jokes because of it, had recently gained more confidence. So far in her story, they had found a kindred spirit in one another with both of them being inexperienced rookies.

"So, we were talking about books one night and he asked me a question about Dracula. It was why the horses died when Dracula's brides danced around them, but were fine when Dracula brought Jonathan Harker to the castle. I didn't know, so I asked Master that question the next night on his behalf. He said that Stoker had been heavily influenced by the Irish folk tales that his mother told him and integrated them into the story and asked to meet Wilkins because he was impressed that someone had caught that. I arranged it and they talked the entire night away in the library. I didn't hear much of the conversation, only that Dracula was his late sister's favorite, which explained why he was so familiar with it."

"Then what happened?"

"Well, some of the men hung Wilkins up as a joke because they said he would be good bait for the vampire a few nights ago. Master showed up a few minutes later and once he had their attention, asked them why they were holding a double standard and thought that only straight people who weren't rapists could become vampires. They panicked and immediately untied Wilkins and then he told them, 'Gentlemen, it is said that the two things certain in life are death and taxes and I am assured that I could do more harm to you than your taxes ever could.' Since then, they've left him alone because he's now been designated as the vampire's favorite." She paused and added, "Well, that's what Master told me."

"And God help the poor bastard who crosses your master." Pip leaned back in the chair, cigarette dangling from his mouth as he thought. "It's good of you to notice things; I've been noticing things, too."

"Like what?"

"Well, for instance, you're keeping less of a distance now, but it's still a pretty big distance."

She blushed and crossed her legs. "We may fight often on the range and field, but this isn't about you."

"So, it's not because I grabbed your ass by accident when I mean to reach for my ammo?"

"No."

"Or the Eskimo song?"

"No."

"And definitely not when I—"

"You're not doing yourself any favors by going on," she said a bit snappishly. "I told you that it has nothing to do with you or your men; do you really feel the need to pry into my personal business?"

"Girlie, I'm the one who works with you the most and it's a pain in the ass if I don't know why one of my soldiers is acting strange."

"I'm not one of your soldiers! I'm…" She stopped and dug her gloved fingers into her palms.

"A vampire?" He laughed halfheartedly. "I thought we'd already figured that."

"Yes, but…" Seras realized that to say that he didn't know what it was like would be useless because the difficulty was implied. As it was, she could barely keep a handle on herself. It had now been a month since she refused to drink blood and more side affects seemed to crop up every day. When she had despaired aloud on one occasion and asked her master, he raised an eyebrow at her and speaking slowly and simply as if it was a child that he addressed, replied "You know as well as I do why, police girl."

"_Mignonette_," Pip entreated, moving to bridge the gap between them. She could see the vein pulsing under his skin and his heartbeat grew in sound by the second. Steeling herself and pushing her chair back, she stood. Her legs quivered, despite the fact that the sun would not rise for another four hours and she drew back. "Captain, please keep yourself on that side of the table. I have to leave right now."

She left without looking back, eyes fixed determinedly ahead. Behind her, the captain sighed heavily as he watched her depart. He knew that it was a vampire thing, but he felt awful. Not even the sight of her derriere could console him. He had no doubt that they would be hearing about this tomorrow, but at the moment, he couldn't have cared less. What he needed was a drink and a smoke and neither would get themselves. He got up, pushing the chairs back in before he absconded in the opposite direction.

A/N: Private Benjamin Wilkins belongs to the user LadyTerragon on Deviantart; she merely let me borrow him. For Hellsing, I always assumed that the disclaimer was implied.


	8. Strings

"Hmm." Alucard frowned as he poked his head in the kitchen, expecting to find his fledgling sitting at the counter with a cup of tea and reading a book, as was her evening custom. Like the earlier rooms he had searched, there was no sign of Seras Victoria. Walter had told him prior that he had seen neither hide nor hair of her since last night.

He was vaguely aware of the somewhat spat between her and the captain, but highly doubted that this was the cause of it, despite his distrust of the soldiers rearing its head. Circadian rhythms also changed when vampirism occurred and it usually took a month or two for the body to sort itself out, not unlike puberty. Nevertheless, Seras Victoria rose promptly at eight o'clock since the week after she was turned. Her room seemed the natural place to search; he had spoken with Integra at twilight and not bothered to return to the basement because he needed only a few hours to function properly.

As he closed the portrait behind him and began to descend, the atmosphere changed. Nostrils flaring, the vampire cocked his head to one side and listened. The breathing was faint, but still audible and the breaths were not as deep as they should have been. The doubt that nagged in the back of his mind took full stage and was mentally shoved in the direction of a sharp and pointy stake. He strode quickly down the hallway, not even bothering to knock as he opened the door to her room and went to her coffin. Slightly pacified at the sight of no blood, Alucard rapped on the lid and lifted it. "Up you get, police…"

He trailed off at the sight of what was curled into the fetal position in the top right corner of the coffin, clad in a uniform that was much too large for it. Confused blue eyes blinked slowly at him from under a fluffy pale fringe as she raised herself slightly and turned to him. Genuinely shocked, he watched her stare.

"Excuse me," he muttered and leaving the lid propped open, went out into the hallway and promptly swore the surrounding air a deep shade of blue. It amazed him how one's mother tongue came back to them in a crisis. In the five hundred and some years he had walked the Devil's Road, he had made more than a few fledglings, but none of them like this. There was no precedent for refusing to drink this long; he had nothing to go on but experience, which was relatively little in the face of this, and intuition. He wondered what had triggered this and then remembered the previous night's mission, which was tracking and killing a pair of rogue freaks who thought it might be fun to terrorize an orphanage.

Wait. Young children threatened and upset, adults in parental roles killed or injured…

"Damn it all to Hell," he imprecated angrily; he had chalked it up as her first exceptionally graphic mission and while being less gruff than usual, did not pause to consider the consequences of her presence. The second naysayer in the back of his brain received a similar fate to the first midway through its triumphant revelry as he braced himself and reentered the room, moving slowly when she startled.

"Hello there," he murmured, dropping to a knee beside her coffin. "Do you know who I am, child?"

She made no sign of encouragement, but he saw the recognition in her eyes. "Good. Can you speak?"

Again, nothing. "I think I might be able to help with that. It would be easier for both of us if you could."

Drawing a small knife out of one of the pockets in his coat, Alucard drew back his left sleeve to expose his wrist and made a small cut, then held it out expectantly. The last things he expected were the child's eyes turning red and fangs elongating as she launched herself at him. Instinct kicking in, he swiftly pivoted himself out of the way, withdrawing the arm before anything else. She hurled past him, limbs tangled in the overlarge uniform, and almost hit the wall, barely managing to catch herself with both hands. Tears threatened to spill as she came to her senses, covering her mouth and whimpering faintly.

"Hush now, Seras Victoria."

Surprised, she struggled a bit as her master moved her into his lap and wrapped his arms firmly around her, directing the side of her head to the hollow of his collarbone and tugging his coat to swathe her. The cut on his wrist had healed itself within a matter of seconds and was now covered by the sleeve.

"It's all right." Still feeling that his words weren't having much of an effect, he resorted back to what he had spoken earlier. True, she couldn't understand a word of it, but the lilting was pleasing to the foreign ear and having spoken Romanian to his three children five hundred years before, it sounded more sincere and came more naturally to him than anything he said to her in English. She nestled closer, her distress subsiding as petite hands fisted in his shirt and a face pressed into the side of his neck.

Sensing it was safe, he reached for the knife again after moving his fledgling's head and cut a small incision at the base of his neck. He put it away and hand on the back of her head, drove her towards it. Once he felt a tiny tongue lap at the wound, he removed it and relaxed slightly. "_**Da, asta e. Bravo**_."

Her bare feet retracted under the coat. Unbidden, Alucard remembered his youngest son wrapping his legs around his father's waist as he pressed against him upon his return from a battle. He stiffened and thrust the memory to the recesses of his thoughts, causing Seras to stop and look up at him. "I'm fine." Carefully, he stood up, putting his hand to the back of her head again to ensure that she kept drinking, and stepped through the wall to find her some clothes that fitted before taking her upstairs, sending a mental message to Integra that he needed to meet her alone in her office in about ten minutes.

She thought the worst when she saw him the bundle under his coat and wished desperately for a cigar. Breathing deeply and adjusting her glasses, she began, "Alucard, what on earth is the meaning of—"

Alucard opened his coat. "Oh." She removed her glasses and wiped them with a handkerchief, but the sight was the same when she replaced them. "The little girl in my old clothes is Officer Victoria, isn't it?"

He nodded grimly. "I found her like this. The clothes were from the attic; we could hardly have a nude, prepubescent fledgling running around the mansion. I can only imagine the reactions of the soldiers."

"Do you have a working hypothesis?"

"The significant lack of blood and the mission last night triggered a negative response because of the psychological trauma she experienced as a child and her body regressed to protect itself from that."

"Is she completely out of it?"

"No, she recognized me and was distressed after I tried to feed her from my wrist and her bloodlust caused a failed attack on me. She's asleep because I helped her the second time and the blood of a master when drunk by a fledgling may work as a sedative in some situations. However, she appears to be mute, though she may be able to function better when she wakes up because she drank from me."

"We'll need her to drink human blood to get her out of this state." Integra pursed her lips thoughtfully. "Is there anything special we need to give her? I don't think she should have any medical blood."

"Correct. I doubt that it would help, either. Generally, there are few things that virgin blood can't cure."

"Someone close to her as well, I think. While we are her masters, we don't spend every second with her and there is some formal distinction in our relationships."

"Are you suggesting the mercenary captain?"

"Who else? This could be moot for all we know; one might as well go all out."

Chastened, Alucard nodded as he shifted his fledgling to a better position. "We can trust him to be discreet; you told me that his intentions were pure and I'm not one to doubt you because you inherited your instincts from Walter and I. If not, he'll learn pretty damn fast. "Red eyes narrowed at the thought.

"I'll go get him now. Don't leave the office and don't let anyone but Walter see her."

"Yes, my master."

As she went to depart, Seras clutched at her suit's sleeve as if her life depended on it, much to the knight's surprise. "No!" She towed the arm to her and nuzzled against the palm, repeating "No. Please."

"Well, so much for that. At least she still has her manners." At the sound of Alucard's voice, she looked up at him timidly and he gently ruffled her hair with his free hand. "I'm not going anywhere, _**micu**__**ţ**__**a**_. Master, I think she's projected the roles of her parents onto us. It would be ill advised to go because of the additional trauma it may cause, and I refuse to leave you alone with her because it's not safe. "

"Just get us to the desk and I'll call him. Then, we can have her feed on me until he gets here."

Five minutes later, Pip was following Walter upstairs, listening intently as the butler briefed him on the situation. After he was sworn to secrecy, the butler left and the captain came to a halt in front of the doorway. His boss was seated, her forearm exposed and her eyelids heavy, and the little blond girl who he assumed was Seras lapped blood from a cut on her wrist. The vampire held her on his lap, watching the two intensely. It was a curiously intimate scene and when Pip's eyes met his, he couldn't help but feel that he was intruding. The vampire cleared his throat and Integra blinked, seeing him standing there, and then beckoned with her free hand. "Come here; we've been expecting you, captain."

Flicking his braid over his shoulder and privately glad that he had smoked earlier, he obeyed. Seras stirred, but her master hushed her and bent her down over the wound again, like a child forcing a kitten to drink milk from a saucer. He dropped to one knee in front of them, observing Integra's reaction.

"How are you feeling?" Alucard queried softly.

"All right. She's slowing down."

"She's taken enough, then." He moved her away, soothing her when she whined softly. "Shh." He then brought Integra's wrist to his mouth and closed the wound with his own tongue. She replaced the sleeve and reclined, slightly pale. "It should heal soon. Mercenary, there's a clean knife on top of the desk. Make a shallow cut on the wrist of the arm that doesn't have your writing hand attached to it."

"Hold up a second. Wouldn't it be better if she drank from my neck? You said that she needed to drink from someone close to her and drinking from someone's wrist seems kind of impersonal to me."

"That's a death wish. She's far too likely to lose control; even I've never done anything like that. If we can't get her off and you do die, where will we be if she returns to normal? The guilt of death may cause her to revert back to this state again and then nothing's been accomplished. "

"What about the shoulder?" Surprised, the two of them regarded Integra. "It's far enough from the neck, so it would be easy to remove the police girl and close enough to retain a level of intimacy."

Pondering a moment, the elder shrugged and stood, shifting Seras to one arm as he grabbed a free chair and brought it over to the captain, then brought his own beside it and sat. "It's certainly worth a try. "

Her little hands felt strange on his knee as she balanced between the two of them. "Hey, remember me?" Pip placed a hand on her head and she moved forward, the side of her head brushing against the crook of his arm. "I guess that's affirmative." He winced as he felt the knife graze him, Integra helping him tug down the collar of his shirt after she wiped the blade with a handkerchief and put it away.

Wide eyed, Seras stared at the wound, Alucard's grip on her waist tightening as she trembled. "No."

"Yes." Pip's hand moved down to the small of her back and urged her to him. "Come on, _mignonette_."

Hesitantly, she crawled onto his lap, her master now holding the back of her shirt. He nodded and urged her again, closing his eyes when her tongue touched the gash. It felt like a cat's and the tingling from the healing enzymes in her saliva was a strangely pleasant sensation. After a while, he heard her sigh and her head pressed against his shoulder. He opened his eyes to see Integra coming towards him and picking her up. Seras cuddled up to her and after she was returned to Alucard, the two departed.

"Will she be all right, sir?"

"Alucard assumes that she will revert to normal tomorrow. I'm sure that I don't need to tell you that this must only be kept between us and Seras is to know nothing about it unless it is absolutely necessary."

"Yes, sir." Pip couldn't tell whether he was feeling content from the loss of blood or her well-being, but leaned against the chair all the same.


	9. Mode of Transportation

Mode of Transportation

"What do you mean we're stuck?"

An irate, heavily French accented exclamation jolted Seras out of her thoughts. A few seats down, Private Wilkins was startled in a similar manner, nearly dropping the paperback in his hand. They normally sat together, but tonight, he had excused himself because on the weekend out in London, by some miracle, he had picked up a new book while the others were making the rounds of the pubs and was anxious to read it. She didn't mind; there was quite a bit for her to think about.

After waking up one evening with no memory of the previous night, her master had paid her a visit. His explanation was that due to limited intake of blood, her body had induced a coma to save itself and they had forced her to drink blood from the source: himself, their master, and an unnamed, willing donor. Regardless, they were putting their feet down and she was to drink enough blood to make up for all the nights that she did not once a month and there would be absolutely no exceptions. She would be a danger to the organization if she were to continue this reckless conduct and was reminded that as a police officer, she should know that the welfare of those around her came before hers. She winced a little remembering his harsh words, though that didn't stop her wondering why there was a child's set of clothing in her coffin when she woke.

Putting it aside to ponder another day, she motioned to Wilkins that she would go out and investigate. The latter nodded gratefully, nose back in his book soon after she nudged past the other men without clocking any of them on the head with her gun but having several very close calls on their part, opened the door, and climbed down in time to see Pip Bernadotte confronting the Geese's mechanic, Djamel.

"You told me that they had done the maintenance on this vehicle three months ago! She was solid as a tank to begin with; why won't she work now?"

"It looked fine when I checked it before we got the call and went out. I haven't popped open the hood yet, but it's probably the fuel pump. There's no warning before they quit."

"Check that now." Pip swore heavily under his breath as Djamel assented and went to follow his orders and turned around, startling a bit when he saw Seras. "_Merde_! _Bon Dieu_, girlie; don't scare me like that."

"It's not my fault that you frighten easily, Captain," she retorted as neutrally as she could, trying to ignore the increased rhythm of his heart and how mesmerizing it sounded. "What do you need?"

"It's bad form to mouth off to a superior officer, police girl; watch your tongue," he reiterated, and then softened. "We may be here a while. Can you contact your master and tell him there's been a delay?"

She nodded and closed her eyes, remaining still for about five minutes. "He wants to know why."

"We'll know in a minute." Djamel opened the hood and pulled off a plug wire, placing the end near the block. "Someone needs to crank the engine."

After a brief flurry of activity within the convoy involving swearing, shouting, and shoving, Wilkins arrived at the wheel, bookless, and began to do it. The engine sparked and the snapping sound was audible, but there was no buzz coming from the direction of the fuel pump. "Yeah, we're definitely going to have to be towed."

"Tell him the fuel pump wore out and ask if there's a number we can call."

Seras nodded and there was a brief internal exchange. "There's a notebook in the glove compartment with the number of a towing company that is affiliated with the Round Table. Don't worry about the vampires; he can handle them himself. Just be sure to call Sir Integra and tell her what's going on; she doesn't like to be the last to know. Her cell phone number should be in the notebook as well."

"Cell phone?" He asked as Djamel went inside to get it.

"She had to go to London to arrange a meeting with the Vatican's Section Thirteen. Before we hired you and before the attack on the mansion, they violated the peace agreement we had with them a while ago when one of them crossed into Northern Ireland and attacked Master and I after killing the head vampire that we were supposed to get. He also went after Sir Integra and killed two of her bodyguards; he only backed off when Master was able to pull himself together after his head had been cut off."

"Damn. Hope he gets hold of the mechanic; the fool certainly deserves it."

"You can say that again." She stretched and subtly shifted away from him. "It will be a while before anything actually comes of the meetings; they're busy people and apparently don't get along with us."

"Why?"

"Because we're Protestant and they're Catholic."

"They're still hanging on to that? I thought that stopped a while ago."

"Not in their minds, apparently. I guess they have that privilege because they officially don't exist—"

Something rustled in the forest nearby and on the edge of his peripheral vision, Pip saw a black and white shape dart through the trees; catching the eye of his companion, he confirmed that it was not his eyes playing tricks on him. "The hell?"

Quickly putting himself in front of Seras when he heard distinct hissing, he called orders into the convoy and was handed a gun. "Are you sure that your master got all of the vampires, police girl?"

After a moment, she answered. "He found a house a few miles from the village they were supposed to attack; they left the three newest fledglings behind. They must have picked up fragments from the leader and the rest of the coven when he caught them on the edge of the forest and panicked."

"Shouldn't they be dead if the leader's dead?"

"They should; that's the thing." She received a weapon of her own and prepared it, sniffing the air. "Manic Panic."

"_Comment_?"

"Hair dye. They haven't washed in weeks, either."

A low-pitched hiss made up of several voices emanated from and around the area that the vampire had disappeared to. It grew louder and Pip was able to understand what they were saying. "Heretic, blasphemer, heathen, consorting with victims, lapdog of the killers of your kind, humanity's whore!"

Behind him, Seras fired and then dropped her gun, lunging at the draculina who had gone for the captain's back over the body of her fallen female sister. Hitting her side hard enough to knock her to the ground, she straddled her lower back and twisted her opponent's free arm against it, wrapping her spare arm around the offender's neck and squeezing tightly. She went limp and her neck snapped; Seras, eyes red, let go and leaned far back with an expression of relish just as the remaining male vampire came charging out of the relative safety of the clearing towards the fledglings to avenge his fallen comrade.

Though he was going fast and had his arms out ready to grab her, he was within a reasonable distance and the butt of the rifle jabbed directly at his throat caused a sickening thud and he toppled backwards. A bullet hit between his eyes as he choked on the blood from the damage and he soon died once more. Pip looked him over critically and shot him again just to be sure, not lowering the gun until he felt satisfied. Seras's eyes faded back to blue and she rose; both confronted each other simultaneously.

"_Abruti_! He was right behind you; why the hell didn't you get out of the way!"

"Git! This is entirely your fault! If you had been watching more closely, I wouldn't have had to move!"

"It's a damn good thing that you…" He trailed off and finished awkwardly. "Saved my ass."

Judging by the lack of reply and the sudden flush on Seras's face, her thoughts had followed a similar vein only with the roles reversed. After a moment or two of mutual self-conscious silence, she spoke up. "Captain, this doesn't have to get…strange. Neither of us owes the other anything and we did our job."

He flicked his braid which had loosened during the confrontation, back around his neck and nodded. "It was a necessary action that had to be undertaken for the mission to be completed successfully."

"Exactly."

"It can only get weird if we let it get weird, and that's not going to happen."

"Right."

Bending over the nearest corpse which had not yet disappeared, he prodded it onto its back with the toe of his boot. "What was so special about those vampires, anyway? They're not usually talkative."

"They're part of a cult called the Children of Darkness. They believe that becoming a vampire is predestined and that they're servants of the Devil, who along with them ultimately serves God. They prey indiscriminately on whoever gets in their path; graveyards, particularly crypts, are their preferred hideouts but modern policing has caused them to choose more discreet areas. The leaders usually have the members dye their hair black and dress alike, usually in rags in order that none of them try to overthrow the leader, as part of being a member of the cult to make their brainwashing easier. "

"Damn."

"Hard to believe they've only been around for twenty-five or so years." She shook her head. "In the nineteen eighties, some idiot got his hands on an Anne Rice book and bloodshed and paperwork ensued."

"Are they always small covens like this?"

"Yes, they're easier to control that way." She paused and sniffed the air. "Hang on a minute."

While Pip went into the van to soothe the ruffled feathers of the Geese and inform Sir Integra of what had transpired and how soon they would be back, the draculina dragged over the three bodies and examined them carefully. When he returned and assured her that they were all caught up, she frowned.

"_Qu'est-ce c'est_?"

She had no idea what the words meant, but his tone gave a fairly good impression. "They've all got a weird smell in common that I didn't notice before. It has a burning smell to it but it's not flesh."

"Rubber?" He thought a moment and came to the more obvious conclusion. "Or more likely plastic."

She was already turning one of the girls over on her side. "Do you have a knife?"

Wordlessly, he withdrew one from his boot and bent over the cadaver, making a shallow horizontal cut in the middle of the nape of the neck. When she told him that the smell was getting stronger, he widened the laceration and dug the blade in deeper. "Watch out; there's something in here."

A bloody microchip the size of a thumbnail fell into her gloved hand. Half of it was burned and the design that they could discern through the heavy bloodstains appeared to be fairly complex. With a sinking feeling in his stomach as Seras placed it in a sealed plastic bag and disappeared inside the convoy to put it in the safe they had on board for evidence, he called out orders and the Geese who were on cleanup duty appeared and after an explanation, executed similar investigations of the fledglings.

Several minutes later, the results were visible. Coming over as she came out of the van, Seras saw the grim expression on the captain's visage, but could not help but ask for clarification. "Chipped?"

"Chipped."


End file.
